Mata Hari - Biography of the Exotic World War I Spy Mata Hari Mata Hari Biography of the Exotic World War I Spy The infamous Dutch spy Mata Hari, real name Margarete Geertruida Zelle, who was born in Leeuwarden and became a dancer in France is performing the Dance of the Seven Veils. (1906). (Photo by Walery/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Updated June 28, 2016. Who Was Mata Hari? Mata Hari was an exotic dancer and courtesan who was arrested by the French and executed for espionage during World War I . After her death, her stage name, "Mata Hari," became synonymous with spying and espionage. Dates: August 7, 1876 -- October 15, 1917 Also Known As: Margaretha Geertruida Zelle; Lady MacLeod Mata Hari's Childhood Mata Hari was born Margaretha Geertruida Zelle in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands as the first of four children. Margaretha's father was a hat maker by trade, but having invested well in oil, he had enough money to spoil his only daughter.

At only six years old, Margaretha became the talk of the town when she traveled in a goat-drawn carriage that her father had given her. In school, Margaretha was known to be flamboyant, often appearing in new, flashy dresses. However, Margaretha's world changed drastically when her family went bankrupt in 1889 and her mother died two years later. Her Family Broke Up After her mother's death, the Zelle family was split up and Margaretha, now age 15, was sent to Sneek to live with her godfather, Mr. Visser. continue reading below our video 10 Best Universities in the United States Visser decided to send Margaretha to a school that trained kindergarten teachers so that she'd have a career. At the school, the headmaster, Wybrandus Haanstra, became enchanted by Margaretha and pursued her. When a scandal broke out, Margaretha was asked to leave the school, so she went to live with her uncle, Mr. Taconis, in The Hague .

She Gets Married In March 1895, while still staying with her uncle, 18-year old Margaretha became engaged to Rudolph ("John") MacLeod, after answering a personal ad in the newspaper (the ad had been placed as a joke by MacLeod's friend). MacLeod was a 38-year-old officer on home leave from the Dutch East Indies , where he had been stationed for 16 years. On July 11, 1895, the two were married. They spent much of their married life living in the tropics of Indonesia where money was tight, isolation was difficult, and John's rudeness and Margaretha's youth caused serious friction in their marriage. Margaretha and John had two children together, but their son died at age two and a half after being poisoned. In 1902, they moved back to Holland and were soon separated. Off to Paris Margaretha decided to go to Paris for a new start.

Without a husband, not trained in any career, and without any money, Margaretha used her experiences in Indonesia to create a new persona, one that donned jewels, smelled of perfume, spoke occasionally in Malay , danced seductively, and often wore very little clothes. She made her dancing debut in a salon and instantaneously became a success. When reporters and others interviewed her, Margaretha continually added to the mystique that surrounded her by spinning fantastic, fictionalized stories about her background, including being a Javanese princess and daughter of a baron. To sound more exotic, she took the stage name "Mata Hari," Malayan for "eye of the day" (the sun). A Famous Dancer and Courtesan Mata Hari became famous. She danced at both private salons and later at large theaters. She danced at ballets and operas. She was invited to the big parties and traveled extensively. She also had a large number of lovers (often military men from a number of countries) who were willing to provide her financial support in exchange for her company. A Spy? During World War I, her frequent traveling across international borders and her varied companions caused several countries to wonder if she was a spy or even a double-agent.

Many people who met her say that she was sociable, but just not smart enough to pull off such a feat. However, the French were confident that she was a spy and arrested her on February 13, 1917. After a short trial in front of a military court, conducted in private, she was sentenced to death by firing squad. On October 15, 1917, Mata Hari was shot and killed. She was 41 years old. What was the real name and nationality of Mata Hari the German Spy during World War I? Interesting Random Facts What was the real name and nationality of Mata Hari the German Spy during World War I? 2010.03.29 | Filed Under: History Leave a Comment Mata Hari was executed by a French firing squad for being a German spy during World War I. She had been popular in Europe as a “Javanese” dancer but was really Dutch, born with the somewhat less exotic name Margaretha Geertruida Zelle. Mata Hari was her stage name. Margaretha Geertruida Zelle was born on 7 August 1876 in Leeuwarden, Friesland in the Netherlands.

Mata Hari’s body was not claimed by any family members and was used for medical study. Her head was embalmed and kept in the Museum of Anatomy in Paris, but in 2000, archivists discovered that the head had disappeared when the museum had been relocated. Read More Mata Hari Biography - Childhood, Life Achievements & Timeline Dancers Mata Hari Biography Mata Hari was a dancer, courtesan and a spy, who was executed in France on charges of espionage. This biography gives detailed information about her childhood, life and timeline. Quick Facts Rudolf John MacLeod (m. 1895â1907) children Louise Jeanne, Norman-John Image Credit Margaretha Zelle or Mata Hari is known to the world as a courtesan and a double-agent who was executed by the French during World War I. However, her trials and convictions have been the subject of speculations even nine decades after her death. A lot of researchers believed that there was not enough evidence to prove the espionage charge and that she was wrongly convicted. There are numerous books written on her and several movies have been made to commemorate this spectacular woman, for whom her emancipation meant everything.

In the male dominated society of her time, she chose a path without any confines or restrictions. She was least ashamed of what she did as she believed that god has gifted her with a flawless beauty and it is not a crime to flaunt it. She was a feminist in her own right who pursued her dreams and lived on her own terms. We all know her as a dancer and courtesan, but before that she was a wife and a mother who led a disastrous family life for nine long years until fate took her to Paris where her beauty and exquisiteness was well-received. Childhood & Early Life Born as Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, Mata Hari was the eldest child of Adam Zelle and his first wife Antje van der Meulen. Her father divorced her mother in 1889. Her mother passed away in 1891 and on February 9, 1893 her father got married to Susanna Catharina ten Hoove. She was sent to live with her godfather in Sneek, where she was trained to become a kindergarten teacher, but later went to live with her uncle in The Hague.

Career After a disastrous marital life in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia), she moved to Paris in 1903. She became a friend of a French diplomat, who told her to pick dancing for a livelihood. With her exotic oriental looks, she started her dancing career in a salon. Her stay in Indonesia had helped her perfect the style of an oriental dancer and seductress and she was not shy of exposing her body. She posed for artists, scantily-clad, while her sensuous dance moves captivated the audiences. Soon, she started gaining popularity and became friends with high-ranking men of her time. However, by 1910 her career in dancing began to decline as young dancers began to surface and replace her. In order to maintain her lifestyle she turned into a courtesan and for a long time she depended on this profession as a source of her income. During World War I, at the age of forty, she used to frequently travel between France and the Netherlands. She would usually travel through Britain and Spain and her journeys aroused a lot of suspicion. Soon, she was tagged as a German spy and even a double-agent working both for Germany and France.

By now, her infamy as a spy grew and the French, who believed she was a German secret agent, arrested her on February 13, 1917 at Hotel Elysee Palace. She was found guilty of espionage on July 24 and on October 15, 1917, at the age of 41, after several trials, she was executed by the firing squad. Personal Life & Legacy She married Dutch Colonial Army Captain Rudolf MacLeod on July 11, 1895, at the age of 19 â her husband was 21 years older to her. She moved to Indonesia with her husband where she gave birth to two children, Norman-John MacLeod and Louise Jeanne MacLeod. Not long after their marriage, problems began to surface owing to MacLeodâs alcoholism and abusive nature. He also had a relationship with a concubine, common in those days in Indonesia. Distraught by her husbandâs infidelity, she left his side and temporarily moved-in with a Dutch officer Van Rheedes. MacLeod requested her to come back but she found that her husband had not changed.

In 1899, both of her children fell seriously ill as they had contracted syphilis. Her son Norman could not survive and passed away, but her daughter survived. In 1907, the couple got divorced. Even long after her death, many people are keenly interested in knowing about Mata Hariâs life and especially her execution as there is still a lot of mystery and speculations involving her job as a spy. A number of films have been made on her life, a good number of books have been written and many songs have also been composed in her name. The Fries Museum in Leeuwarden, Netherlands, has a room dedicated to Mata Hari where her scrapbooks have been kept along with an embroidered carpet which has the footsteps of her fan dance. Trivia This Dutch dancer, courtesan and spy, who was executed during World War I, adopted a name which means âeye of the dayâ in Indonesian.

Translate this page to Spanish, French, Hindi, Portuguese Pictures of Mata Hari WWI ‘spy’ Mata Hari in new Dutch ballet - NATIONAL - The Hindu WWI ‘spy’ Mata Hari in new Dutch ballet February 02, 2016 00:00 IST Updated: February 02, 2016 05:52 IST Share Article February 02, 2016 00:00 IST Updated: February 02, 2016 05:52 IST Tickets for the premiere at the show in Amsterdam on February 6 are already sold out Nearly a century after she was shot as an alleged spy, the story of the world’s ultimate femme fatale, Mata Hari, is to be staged for the first time as a ballet in her native Netherlands. Mata Hari will open to an already sold-out premiere at the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam on February 6, aiming to bring to life through dance the woman whose name has become synonymous with unbridled sensuality and ultimately, fatal betrayal.

Frisian-born Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, known by her stage name Mata Hari, was executed by a French firing squad on October 15, 1917 after being accused of spying for Germany during World War I. She was just 41. In the years before the war, her daring striptease act had brought her notoriety, fame and adoration and she’s widely regarded as one of the world’s first-ever exotic dancers. Now her story is being told “en pointe” for the first time. “I wanted to make a dramatic ballet... and I was looking for a subject matter to create dance, so there had to be a connection with dance,” said Ted Brandsen, Dutch National Ballet director and the show’s choreographer. “Mata Hari was a person who always fascinated me and she was Dutch. A lot of people actually don’t know that,” Mr. Brandsen said. The idea of creating a major new ballet began four years ago — and when Brandsen shared his plans with two-time Grammy-nominated British composer Tarik O’Regan, it all came to life.

More than 60 dancers will perform during the two-hour production featuring a kaleidoscope of experiences from Mata Hari’s life. Much of the ballet is set in Paris, where she kept a string of lovers said to include famous Italian composer Giacomo Puccini. “Much like Mata Hari had a fast-paced life, so do we want to tell her story in a fast-paced way on stage,” said Brandsen. Richly complementing the dance, is a wardrobe of more than 300 lavish costumes designed by Francois-Noel Cherpin — who began working on the designs three years ago. Deep inside the company’s building next to the Amstel River, Brandsen and his co-producers are hard at work. Principle dancer, Russian ballerina Anna Tsygankova, glided effortlessly through rehearsals. “To touch upon her life story is a great opportunity for me to get to know Mata Hari better,” Ms. Tsygankova, who trained at the Bolshoi ballet, said. “She is an enigma to me. Who can say for sure? Was she just a dancer?

Was she really a spy, or perhaps a victim of her circumstances?” After a rancorous divorce from a Dutch officer in the colonial army left Zelle penniless, she fled to Paris in 1904 to start a new life. There she quickly reinvented herself as “Mata Hari”, an Indonesian word for “Eye of the Day” and adopted Javanese dancing in an erotic act that often left little to the imagination. Fame of her “exotic beauty” quickly spread across Europe and almost overnight she became a celebrity, who also raised eyebrows for her many affairs. “She went to Paris and completely reinvented herself. That idea is what intrigues me about her,” said Mr. Brandsen. “She became comparable to somebody like Madonna, or Lady Gaga today. She became famous very quickly.” By 1914 however her popularity was waning and she found herself in Berlin when war broke out. She was recruited by the Germans to spy on France and Britain. But today it is widely believed she never really took the deadly business of spying seriously, but rather agreed because of the money —and the glamour.

After trying to reach the front to meet a young Russian officer, her lover at the time, Mata Hari was arrested by a French officer and charged with being a double agent. On a cold October morning she was shot in the Parisian suburb of Vincennes. On the day of her execution, Mata Hari is said to have declined a blindfold and blew kisses to her executors. “She died with her head held high,” Mr. Brandsen said. — AFP Mata Hari Biography -Biography Online About Mata Hari Biography Mata Hari was an exotic dancer from the Netherlands who gained much fame in France as a dancer. During the First World War she was arrested on charges of espionage and executed by a French firing squad. Evidence of her actual guilt is frequently questioned. Mata Hari was born 7 August 1876 in Leeuwarden, Netherlands. Her name at birth was Margaretha Geerruida Zelle. Until the age of 13 she lived a comfortable lifestyle, attending elite private schools paid for by her father. Her father doted much attention on his ‘little princess’ making her used to the attention of men. However, in 1889, her father went bankrupt and her parents soon divorced.

She tried to study to be a kindergarten teacher but her godfather removed her after the Headmaster became attached to Margaretha. When she was 18, she answered a newspaper ad from a handsome Dutch officer living in Java, the East Indies. In those days it was common for Dutchman living in colonies to request wives by placing ads in papers. Margaretha moved to Java where the couple had two children. However, the marriage was not a happy one, with her husband, Rudolph Macleod, suffering from alcoholism; he would often be violent to his wife, blaming her for many of his own failings. Margaretha also had difficulty in her role as housewife. She admitted “I was not content at home… I wanted to live like a colourful butterfly in the sun.” During her time in the Dutch East Indies Margaretha took the opportunity to learn about native dance and the local customs. Later she also had an affair with another Dutch officer, before being persuaded to return to her husband. However, they divorced in 1902, shortly after the tragic death of their young son.

Mata Hari in Paris When she returned to Paris in 1903, she gained work in a circus before moving on to work as an exotic dancer. With her background in the East Indies she was able to claim that she was a Java Princess of Hindu birth, something which added to her allure and fascination. One of her biographers Pat Shipman wrote of Mata Hari “Her languid, graceful style of moving, her dark eyes and luxurious hair, telegraphed her sexuality to any male in her presence,” [1] It was at this time that she took the name of Mata Hari – meaning “the eye of the day” in Java. She soon became well known for her flirtatious and sensual dancing. She helped ushered in a new era of modern dance which sough inspiration from the East, Egypt and also had no inhibitions about displaying and flaunting her body. With a tradition of Eastern dance, Mata Hari helped elevate exotic dance to a more respectable background. However, it was also criticised by others for its cheap eroticism in the garb of culture. Mata Hari had several relationships with powerful men across the continent. This included Frederick William Ernest, the German crown prince, wealthy French businessmen and high ranking French military officers.

Mata Hari in the First World War The outbreak of the First World War placed her in a unique and difficult position. Initially she found herself in Germany with her sources of finance cut off. But, with her usual resources she was able to gain sufficient finances to restart travelling. With her Dutch nationality (Netherlands remained neutral in the war) she was able to cross different national boundaries. This took her between Germany and France often via Britain or Spain to avoid front line. As she knew both high ranking German and Frenchmen, this inevitably placed her under suspicion as someone who could in theory transfer information about the other’s war effort. On one occasion she admitted to the British she was working as a spy for the French. However, the French never confirmed or denied this. In January 1917, the French intercepted a coded message from the Germans saying they had gained much useful information from a German spy code named H-21. From this information, suspicion fell on Mata Hari and she was arrested. It later emerged the Germans knew there code had been broken, so the Germans may have contrived to send this message framing Mata Hari, who might really have been working for French. On flimsy evidence she was convicted of spying.

Thirty years after the trial, one of the prosecutors admitted there wasn’t enough evidence to ‘flog a dead cat’. After a trial, she was executed by firing squad on 15 October 1917. Last photograph of Mata Hari Her execution has been the source of much speculation, but sources suggest she refused a blindfold but, well dressed, she accepted her death with stoicism. Henry Wales a British reporter who covered her execution, wrote of the execution, saying when guards came to take her to the place of execution, Mata Hari merely replied ‘I am ready‘ [2] Henry Wales also wrote “Never once had the iron will of the beautiful woman failed her.” [2] Twelve soldiers were in the firing squad. After the order to shoot, she sank to her knees, an officer then shot her in the head with a pistol to make sure she was dead. After her death her life has been the subject of many different accounts which have tended to embellish on certain details of her life Citation : Pettinger, Tejvan . “Biography of Mata Hari “, Oxford, UK – .

Last updated 12th Aug 2014 Femme Fatale: Love, Lies, and the Unknown Life of Mata Hari Mata Hari, photo, biography Mata Hari Biography Mata Hari This woman became a legend during his lifetime. Historians disagree about whether it was acting as dual agent, the result of moral weakness and cynicism or, conversely, top acting talent, intelligence and ability to use people and situations for their own purposes. . . Margaret Geertruyda Zell, known in history under the name Mata Hari, born in August 1876, Mr. . Leeuwarden, the capital of the northernmost province of Friesland, the Netherlands, in the family Hatter. She grew a written beauty with an excellent figure, big eyes and black hair. Probably, in my youth it was a lot of problems if the parents have sent 17-year-old girl in The Hague, under the supervision of his uncle, known for its rigor. . . Guardianship by relatives soon tired of Margaret, and she began looking for a way to begin to live independent life . For a girl of that time the only way out was to marry.

Looking through the newspaper with the matrimonial ads Mapgaret as a possible bride chose an officer of the Dutch East India, who was on home leave. Margaret wrote a letter to him. First meeting encouraged both sides. The name of her chosen one - Rudolf Maklid, he is almost 20 years older than Margaret and comes from an old Scottish family. Eighteen months after the wedding, Margaret's son allowed. Soon the family moved to the Dutch East Indies, the place of service Maklida Elder, Life in the new place is not built up. Permanent jealous husband, the death of his son, a tropical climate - everything speeds up the gap between the spouses. Paris has become a waking dream for disillusioned in the family life of a young female-ness. In a few years, and Margaret, who became a famous dancer, a correspondent's question, why it was precisely in Paris, he replied: "I do not know, but I think that all women who have escaped from their husbands, pulls in Paris". After the divorce, without a livelihood, with even born in Java in the hands of her daughter, Margaret is really going to the French capital, which intends to become the Artist's Model.

But a month later, she returns to Holland. Career of models failed for the reason that she ... too small breasts. However, it does not give up, and in 1904. makes a second attempt. Now the fate of more than kind to her: in Paris, finds a job in the school of riding at the famous circus Mollier, here it handy ability to handle horses, resulting in the East Indies. Monsieur Mollier advised her to use her beauty and try his luck as a performer of Oriental dance. Margaret, who speaks fluent Malay, and in the East Indies, often watched local dancers, listened to unexpected council, and it brought her world fame. The debut took place in late January 1905. at a charity evening in the salon Russian singer Madame Kireyevsky. Spectators enthusiastically embraced Margaret. She liked to tell the mysterious story, as in the Buddhist temples of the Far East it joined to the sacred dance rituals. . . Perhaps, these fantasies have also contributed to its success, but Margaret was indeed a natural talent . At first it appears under the name Lady Maklid. Its success grows.

Newspaper Courier fran wrote that, even while remaining stationary, it cast a spell viewer, so when dancing, its charms are magically. . . One of the most loyal of its fans was Monsieur GLEAM, a wealthy industrialist, a great connoisseur of art . In order to post his private collection he built a famous museum of Oriental art - Myuze GLEAM. He comes to mind extravagant idea: he gives an address Javanese dancer among the displays in its museum. The names of the lady Maklid or Margaret Zell him seem inappropriate for such an extravagant atmosphere, so he invents the name of an eccentric dancer Mata Hari, which is translated from Javanese means "eye of dawn". . . She appeared before the audience in a luxurious oriental dress, borrowed from the collection of Monsieur GLEAM, but during the dance gradually threw off his clothes, leaving only rows of pearls and sparkling bracelets . That day, March 13, 1905, changes the entire life of Margaret. Among the favorite guests on the representation of presence after Japan and Germany. While speech naked dancers was a sensation. Soon all Paris lay at the feet of the lovely Mata Hari. . .

Margaret: "I never knew how to dance, and if people come to my performances, then, I must only that first ventured to appear before them without clothes." . . March 18, 1905, Mr. . newspaper "La Presse wrote:" Mata Hari affects you not only the movements of their legs, hands, eyes, lips. Not constrained by clothing, Mata Hari game affects your body ". But that said her former husband: "She has flat feet, and she absolutely can not dance." In 1905, Mr.. Mata Hari 30 times acted in the most exclusive salons of Paris, including 3 times in the mansion of Baron Rothschild. One of his greatest triumphs she experienced in August 1905. in the famous theater "Olympia". Mata Hari conquered Paris. Here's what he wrote May 2, 1905, Mr.. Paris Edition of The New York Herald: "It is impossible to imagine a more noble statement of Indian religious mysteries, than was done here." In January 1906. she receives a two-week engagement in Madrid. It was her first foreign tour.

Then, Mata Hari is going to Cote d'Azur - Monte Carlo Opera House invited her to dance in the ballet Massenet's "King Lagorsky". It was a very important moment in her career, because Opera Monte Carlo, along with Paris, are among the leading musical theater in France. The premiere was a complete success. Puccini, who was at that time in Monte Carlo, the hotel sends her flowers, and Massenet wrote: "I was happy when I saw how she dances!" In August 1906. Mata Hari goes to Berlin. There she becomes the mistress of a wealthy landowner Lieutenant Alfred Kiperta. He invites her to Silesia, where from 9 to 12 September, the Kaiser's army carried out maneuvers. At the end of 1906. Mata Hari dancing in the hall of the Vienna Secession, and then in the theater "Apollo". Yielding to persistent protests by the church, she is forced to wear tight-fitting tights. . . Some enterprising Netherlands produces cigarettes cigarette magnate "Mata Hari", . hyped them as follows: "The latest Indian cigarettes, . meet the exacting taste, .

manufactured from the finest grades of tobacco from the island of Sumatra., . . Parting with Kipertom, Mata Hari, in early December 1907, returned to Paris, where he takes a room in a luxurious hotel "Maurice" . It prospered, and now appears only in the representations, arranged for charity. Her fame competes with unsurpassed glory of the American dancer Isadora Duncan. In January, 1910. Mata Hari again on tour in Monte Carlo. Since June 1910. until the end of 1911. it is entirely immersed in the personal life. She has an affair with a Parisian stockbroker Russo, with whom she lives in a castle in the Loire. Margaret fell in love before the insanity of this man and for him ready to abandon the triumphal speeches. But when things Rousseau shaken, she leaves him and takes a villa in the picturesque Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine. . . At that time it fulfilled an old dream - the famous Milan opera house La Scala angazhiruet it for the winter season 1911/12 r .

The authoritative newspaper "Corriere de l Serra and" calls it the master of dance, endowed with the gift of mimicry ingenuity inexhaustible imagination and extraordinary expressiveness. . . However, despite the triumph of the best scenes of the world, spoiled dancer experiencing financial difficulties . In the summer season 1913. Mata Hari appears again in Paris, in 1 new production staged at the stage of "Folies Bergere". There she danced Habanera. Performances are again with the full house. Spring 1914. she again went to Berlin, where he again met Lieutenant Kiperta. March 23, 1914, Mr.. She signed with the Berlin theater Metropol contract to participate in the ballet "Abductor million," which premieres scheduled for September 1. But a month before the scheduled premiere of the war begins. The fact that on the eve of war, July 31, 1914, Mata Hari is in Berlin, to the same dining at a restaurant with a senior police official, who later would be used as evidence of spying for Germany. . .

Mata Hari: "One night in late July 1914, I dined in the room of the restaurant with one of my fans, one of the leaders of the police background Gribalem (he directed the foreign department) . Suddenly we heard a noise of some demonstrations Gribal, from which nothing about her knew, went with me to the area. Before the Palace was a huge crowd. All cried out: "Germany above all!" As Germany and France are at war, Mata Hapi decided to return to Paris via neutral Switzerland. August 6, 1914, Mr.. it is sent to Basel, but on the Swiss border is facing an unexpected obstacle: in the Bounds allowed to transfer only her luggage, and she can not travel to Switzerland, because she does not have the necessary documents. It has to return to Berlin. August 14, 1914, Mr.. she goes but Frankfurt that in there the niderlandskom consulate to obtain a document on the right to travel to neutral Holland. Upon arrival in Amsterdam, she falls into a rather awkward position, since her wardrobe, or even in Switzerland, or slowly goes to Paris. In Amsterdam, she has no friends and very little money.

All of her wealthy friends and patrons called in the army, and the receipt of theatrical engagements do not even dream. Despite this, Mata Hari settles in an expensive hotel "Victoria". Mata Hari: "returned to the motherland, I felt just awful. I have absolutely no money. However, in The Hague, he lived one of my very wealthy admirer, his name was van der Capellen. But I knew how important it is for clothes, so he did not find him until they update their wardrobes. The situation was complicated, so one day, leaving the church in Amsterdam, I allowed a certain stranger talk to me. He was a banker named Henry van der Shelk. He became my lover. He was kind and extremely generous. I pretended to be Russian, so he considered it his duty to acquaint me with the sights of the country, which I knew better than him. " Van der Shelk pays the hotel bills and. Mata Hari holds a banker a few weeks of cloudless. Now she can think about resuming contact with his long-time fan of Baron van der Kapellen. In the first van der Shelk introduced her with a certain gentleman Verflyaynom, which will play a decisive role in her fate.

While living in Brussels, he has extensive business with the Germanic occupation authorities and is a close friend of the new germanskogo Governor-General, Baron von Bissingen. Through Verflyayna Mata Hari in early 1915. met with the consul Charles H. Kramer, head of Germany the official information service in Amsterdam, under the roof that hid etsya Germanic Intelligence Division III-b. Mata Hari at the time of resuming contacts with Baron van der Kapellen, which helps 39-year-old dancer to overcome its financial difficulties. Thanks to his help in late September 1914. she takes a small house in The Hague, and in another few weeks, she manages to get an engagement Hague Royal Opera House. But the habit of living on a grand scale leads to the fact that it is constantly short of money. In late autumn 1915. Germany Secret Service III-b recruits Mata Hari. . . More than a quarter of a century later, when there was already following World War II, a retired major von Repel, which in the First World War led the Military Intelligence Center West, admits that he was the curator of Mata Hari . It happened on Nov.

24, 1941 . . In a letter to former employee of Colonel Nikolai, . and later Chief of Counterintelligence Reichswehr "Major General retired temp, . He wrote: "Exit at Mata Hari managed by Baron von Mirbach, . which, . Being a Knight of the Order ioannitov, . was given the officer-intelligence, . The latter just shared H-21 (code number of the Mata Hari), chief of service III-b. Then I was still in the center of military intelligence, "the West" in DпїЅ+sseldorf and was summoned by telephone to Colonel Nicolai in Cologne, where the first conversation between H-21 and Colonel Nikolai. How Mirbach, so I was advised not to let in Germany H-21, which then lived in The Hague. But the chief of III-b insisted. " Werner von Mirbach, a longtime admirer of the dancer, he served in the headquarters of the 3rd Army, which in 1915. fought in the Champagne.

He became aware of the plight of Mata Hari, and he decided to recruit her and make the agent of division III-b, given that it revolved in the highest circles of Paris. His intelligence officer, Captain Hoffman, immediately reported this to the head of intelligence, Major Nicolai. Now in the case included the Consul Kramer, already familiar with Mata Hari. In his opinion, it would not abandon a well-paid secret service, and Nick gives instructions to call her in Cologne. The situation at the front at this time was difficult, moreover, the Germans feared imminent enemy attack, so you need to hurry. Mata Hari was able to win the officers of the secret service, and Nikolai orders to proceed immediately to her training in an accelerated program. . . Major von Repel later recalled: "In the future, Mata Hari often told me that she had seen while crossing the border in Zevenaare . Among the people accompanying her was mulatto maid from India, which, perhaps, too, played a dual role. Chef III-b seconded H-21 from Cologne to Frankfurt, where it was staged at the Hotel Frankfurter Hof ". And I Fraulein Doctor Shragmyul-LSR staying at the Carlton.

I had a few days to instruct the H-21 on political and military. Fraulein doctor must determine the travel time H-21, as well as to instruct her on the conduct of observations and methods of information transfer. When we started training on the use of special chemical ink, to help me was sent to Mr. Haberzak of the intelligence center in Antwerp. In the future, we both began to teach her chemical correspondence texts and tables. At the same time a conversation with the head of III-b. It was held at the Hotel Domhotel ", not far from Cologne Cathedral. When the conversation was restricted Doctor Hoffman and I. After receiving a new task, we returned to Frankfurt. Senior waiter Hotel Frankfurter Hof "previously worked as a senior waiter at the Paris Ritz Hotel. He immediately recognized the Mata Hari, and, as we learned the next day, evening, invited her to visit her home. Possible and had to instruct Mata Hari of the city, under the guise of walks for us when no one is watching. During one of these walks, she said that perhaps she should not have to go on a visit to the chief waiter, and that interest in it that man in general inspires her strong concerns.

It seems that she is with Paris since he owed some money: my own eyes I saw how she brought him a check. " After the briefing, Mata Hari went back to The Hague. Her first task was to find in Paris the next plans of the Allied offensive. In addition, during the trip and stay in the areas of interest in the military sense, it was supposed to fix, where there is movement of troops. It is required to maintain constant communication with the two focal points of the wiring Germany against France: the center of "the West" in DпїЅ+sseldorf, . led by Major von Repelem, . and intelligence center germanskogo Embassy in Madrid, . headed by Major Arnol-house Kalle., . . Shortly after his return Mata Hari Consul visits Kramer . Later, during questioning, she told about the meeting as if it had occurred in May 1916, that is, until her second visit to France: "Consul learned that I have requested an entry visa to France. He began to talk so, "I know that you are going to go to France. No Would you give us certain services?

We would like you to have gathered there for us information that, in our view, could be of interest to us. In the case of your consent, I am authorized to pay you 20 000 francs. I told him that a fairly modest amount. He agreed and added the following, "To get more, you must first prove what you are capable". I asked a little time for reflection. When he left, I thought about their expensive fur coats who were detained by the Germans in Berlin, and decided that it would be fair if I elongation are the maximum that can. So I wrote to Kramer: "I thought it all out. You may bring money. Consul came immediately and pay the promised amount in the French currency. He told me to write it in ink for cryptography. I replied that it would be inconvenient for me because now I have to sign his real name. He replied that there are some ink, which nobody can not read, and added that I signed his letters H-21. Then he gave me three small vial, labeled numbers 1, 2, 3. Having received from Monsieur Cramer 20 000 francs, I politely evicted him.

I assure you that from Paris, I never wrote to them and hints. Incidentally, these three bottles, pouring their contents, I threw in the water as soon as our boat approached the channel that goes from Amsterdam to the North Sea. " . . British agents are aware of the activities within the framework of Cramer III-b and literally watched his every step . They told the London Center of the consul's visit to Mata Hari. In December, 1915. She arrives in France. She had to go through England, as Belgium was occupied by the Germans. Arriving in Paris, she takes a room in "Grand Hotel" and proceeds to fulfill its mission. Meeting old friends, she tries to secular chatter learn from them every possible interest of German intelligence information. . . Among her friends and former Minister of War, Adolf Messiah, and Lieutenant Jean Adler, who served in the War Department, at last, and Jules Cambon, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs . At night, she did not lose time in vain, meeting with many French and British officers. Soon she had a rather complete picture of the intentions of the allies on germanskom front.

In the end, she said germanskomu agent that, but at least in the near future, the French do not plan offensive operations. This dispatch confirms the information obtained from other sources. Therefore, the command is preparing another attack only the beginning of 1016 Germany Secret Service, meanwhile misinformation starts operation. It distributes all sorts of rumors and fakes troop movements, creating the impression that the German High Command is preparing a major offensive at the same time in Alsace and Flanders. With these diversions leadership Germanic army can not conceal preparations for an attack on Verdun, which is scheduled for February 1916. From Paris, Mata Hari goes to Spain. This trip was a reconnaissance nature - she was assigned to conduct surveillance at railway junctions in Central and South of France for the movement of military echelons and for the concentration of troops. January 11, 1916, Mr.. Mata Hari reaches the Franco-Spanish border station Andey, and one day she arrives in Madrid. Mata Hari stopped in the Palace "and is associated with germanskogo Embassy military attache, Major Calle, to convey information about what she saw and heard during the trip.

This information, apparently, seemed to Major so important that he disposed of immediately transmit it to the consul Kramer in Amsterdam. Radio message, as always, is encrypted code of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. No one realizes that the British office radiopodslushivaniya intercepts him a report and sends it to Room 40. Deciphering Germanic dispatches now is not much difficulty for the British, as Alexander Stsek from German radio center in Brussels between November 1914. and April 1915. gradually rewrote and passed all British intelligence code book germanskogo FM. British intelligence service MI-6 could without much difficulty to establish exactly what the agent was traveling from Paris through Andey in Madrid, to report their observations military attache Kalle. . . In fact, intercepted radio messages only confirms the findings of the service MI-6, that Mata Hari recruited Germanic intelligence . After talks in Madrid in Portugal, she returned to The Hague, where she looks forward to an old friend, Baron van der Capellen. But Mata Hari wants to return to Paris. So she applied for the grant it a new Dutch passport in the name of Margaret Sellin Maklid.

May 15, 1916, Mr.. gave her a passport, entry visa to France, she also receives, without delay. However, the British Consulate refused her a visa for a short stay in England. At the request of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the London Telegraph reports that the Foreign Office has its own reasons for admission to England this lady is undesirable. About cabled reply from London, she did not say. Therefore, she still decides to go to France, but not in England, and across Spain. 24 May 1916. Mata Hari sits in The Hague on the steamer "Zealand" and should be up to the Spanish port of Vigo. It is not known whether it will meet this time in Madrid with Major Kalle. In any case, June 16, 1916. through the border station Andey trying to enter France. But the French border, despite its vigorous protest, suddenly refused to let her. They say that the reason for the ban on her entry into France of unknown. Then she wrote a letter to his old friend Monsieur Jules Cambon, Secretary General of the French Foreign Ministry, the second man in this ministry. . .

But the very next day, without even having time to send a letter, she learns that is free to enter France . Such behavior of the French authorities are not alerted her and she gladly go to Paris. Assuming stay in the French capital for quite a long period, she rents an apartment on the fashionable Avenue Henri Martin. She accidentally discovers that her friend, an officer in the tsarist army, captain Vadim Maslov undergoing treatment at the resort of Vittel in the Vosges. This resort is located in front of the forbidden zone, so Mata Hari is seeking a lieutenant Jean Allora from the War Office to obtain a special pass that allows the right to enter there. The lieutenant advised her to turn to his friend in the military bureau of Immigration. Office is located on the Boulevard Saint-Germain, 282. The following is a very significant event. Unknown, . whether by chance, . whether the French deliberately gave her the wrong room number, . whether she did so at the direction of Germany's secret service, . but, . anyway, . She finds himself face to face with the captain of the Lada, . chief of the French counterintelligence., . .

He asks the Mata Hari of her relationship with the lieutenant Allora and captain Maslov . This turn of affairs was clearly a surprise for her. She asked: "So you brought to me?" In response, Lada said: "I do not believe the British post, you spy". Moreover, he promised to help with obtaining permits in the restricted area. Mata Hari was about to say goodbye, but then the captain Lada invites her to become a French agent and asked how she would like to receive for such cooperation. She asked for time for reflection. Two days later, Mata Hari gets a pass in Vittel. Then she visits one of his friends, a diplomat Henri de Margerie, occupying a high position in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and asked his advice concerning the proposal of the Lada. . . Mata Hari: "Monsieur de Margerie said that the job of this kind are very dangerous . However, from his point of view, and generally from a position of a Frenchman, too, if someone in a position to provide such service to his country, it is certainly, I " Mata Hari is sent to Vittel, where dwells from 1 to 15 September 1916.

She spends time in the company of his Russian friend. She understands that in France it is unlikely to proceed undetected. Agents, which to her put a Lada, do not notice any suspicious behavior on her part, in particular, not the slightest interest in the nearby resort of the French air base Kontreksevil. In her carefully perlyustriruemoy mail and there is nothing suspicious. After returning to Paris, she said Lada their willingness to be his agent. Lada intends to send her to Belgium, so she tells him about his good relations with a certain Monsieur Ver-flyaynom, a close friend of the governor-general of Belgium. . . Mata Hari: "I will write Verflyaynu and go to Brussels, taking their most beautiful dresses . I will frequently visit Germanic supreme command. That's all I can promise you. I'm not going to stay there for several months and the tradeoff in detail. I have only one big plan that I would like to exercise. Only one. . . She is referring, . that all means try to get plans germanskogo High Command, . For the immediate onset, . The direct question, . why she wants to help France, .

responds: "For this I have only one reason - I want to marry that man, . I love, . and I want to be independent. ", . . Without false modesty, it requires for its work a million francs! But she said that this amount should be paid after the Lada convinced of the value of the information . Lada agrees to its terms, but refuses to pay even a small down payment. He recommends that she go through Spain in The Hague, and there await further orders. November 5 19J6 g. Mata Hari was going from Paris to Vigo. Lada reserved for her cabin on board the "Holland", which is 9 November 1916. goes to sea. Along the way, the ship enters the English port of Falmouth. Here staff of Scotland Yard after a thorough interrogation of arrested her and the morning of November 13 brought to London. The British arrested Mata Hari, taking her for a long time sought germanskogo secret agent, Clara Bendix. Sir Basil Thomson, head of Scotland Yard is investigating her case personally. Three days later, Thompson sent a letter to the Netherlands ambassador in London, to read: "Sir, .

I have the honor to inform you, . that a woman with a fake passport in the name of Margaret Sellin Maklid, . 2063, . issued in The Hague, 12 May 1916., . provides us under arrest on suspicion of, . that it is in fact an agent of Germany's German nationality, . namely Clara Bendix from Hamburg, . She denies his identity with that person. We have taken steps to establish corpus delicti. In the passport there are signs of possible fraud. She expressed her desire to write to your Excellency, for which she had been given writing materials. " After some time, Thomson was convinced that the gang really is not Clara Bendix. Now he wants to find out why it is absolutely necessary to get to Holland. Mata Hari leads Scotland Yard chief in surprise, saying that it is in the way of the secret instructions from the French secret services. Thus, Thompson discovers that his colleague in Paris, although he issued a confidential warning, enlisted woman in the files of British intelligence is listed as a spy. . .

Lada, having learned from Thompson that the dancer had told him about his mission, was extremely annoyed and sent a telegram to London: "It is not clear stop send back to Spain, Mata Hari" . They say Lada further informed by Scotland Yard, which, according to his information, Mata Hari was traveling to Holland on orders from the Germans. It goes without saying that Mata Hari nothing about these dispatches do not know and on the advice of Thomson goes back to Spain. Here, 11 December 1916. She noted in the Netherlands Consulate, and then renews its contact with Major Kalle and tells of his adventures in England. Although she again encountered financial difficulties, major Kalle at this time refuses to help her at his own expense. He radiruet Consul Kramer in Amsterdam and asked to transfer money for the H-21 in Paris. . . Here is what says on this subject is already familiar to us, Major Repel: "When Kramer read the telegram, he fell into despair and said that all this will end badly." . . Meanwhile, Mata Hari has received from Major Kalle special order .

He wanted the time that it has yet to be held in Madrid, she has devoted a French senior officers who are in the Spanish capital. . . The next day Mata Hari meets in the Palace "Colonel Danvinya of the French Embassy . He is the post of military attache and "concurrently" directs the Department of espionage in Madrid. She frankly tells him about his adventures in Falmouth, on his visit to the Major Kalle and reports that are still awaiting instructions from Paris, from the captain Lada. In response, the Colonel is required of it as soon as possible to get information about the German U-boat off the coast of Morocco. Danvin be on official business to go to Paris, and on the day of his departure, Major Kalle sends a double spy at the hotel note. Mata Hari: "In the note he asked me if I do not agree at three o'clock in the afternoon to drink tea with him. He was more cold than usual, seemed to have learned about my meetings with the colonel. " From Calle she learns that the French have sent a telegram from Madrid on the Germanic subs Moroccan coast. "We are aware of their code," - added Kalle.

This information and other information from major Calle, who Mata Hari to the French secret service, are untrue and designed only to strengthen its position in the eyes of the enemy. Throughout the war the Germans had no plans to conduct any operations off the coast of Morocco. Meanwhile, Mata Hari gets a letter from one of his Spanish friends, Senator Huno. He warns her that some French agent advised him to discontinue his friendship with her. Three weeks later, when in Madrid, she had nothing else to do, she is preparing to leave for Paris. . . Meanwhile, the French office of radio coverage, . having at its disposal a powerful radio station on the Eiffel Tower, . deciphered telegrams, . exchanged Major Kalle and Amsterdam: "Agent H-21 arrived Madrid, . was recruited by the French, . but sent the British back to Spain and asked for money and further instructions ", . Kramer replies: "Give her instructed to return to France and continue the job". From Cramer's agent N-21 receive a check for 5 thousand. francs. Mata Hari was leaving from Madrid, 2 January 1917, Mr..

In the hour of arrival of trains in Paris, Colonel Danvin should go out in Madrid. At the Austerlitz train station, she barely has time to share with him a few phrases. Colonel responded to her questions and rather reluctantly evasively. Captain Lada and her old friend, Jules Cambon, Secretary General of the Foreign Ministry, behave very carefully and weigh every word. . . From her lover, Vadim Maslov, who arrived in short-term leave for Paris, Mata Hari knows that the Russian embassy in Paris, he warned against the continuation of any relationship with a dangerous spy " . After the departure of the Maslov Mata Hari began to conduct a complete entertainment stormy life, seems to want to forget all the disappointments of recent weeks ... On the morning of February 13, 1917, Mr.. the door of her room in the ElysпїЅLe Palace hotel, knocked. Opening the door, she saw six men in the form. It was the police chief and his subordinates Priolo. He makes Mata Hari an arrest warrant on charges of espionage. It is placed in jail Faubourg-Saint-Denis Saint-Lazare.

She immediately filed a petition management of the prison: "I am innocent and has never engaged in any espionage activities against France. Therefore, please give the necessary instructions to get me fired from here. " During interrogations, the investigator Bushardona, covering as much as four months, there is only a clerk, a soldier Baudouin. Counsel Mata Hari Klyune permitted only on the first and last of the 14 interviews, on 13 February and 21 June 1917. . . The record, . in addition to intercepted radio messages, . available information on the results of observations of agents captain Lada, . Discount-bank confirmation of the receipt of money Mata Hari, . sent from abroad, . her personal documents and evidence of its attempts to return to the Netherlands, . as well as an analysis of the contents of a suspicious tube and a bottle of ink for cryptography, . available only in Spain., . . Mata Hari: "It's just an alkaline solution, it is used for the purposes of intimate . Last December, I set down a Madrid physician. The money received by it through the Discount Bank, according to her testimony, sent the Baron van der Kapellen.

The interrogator asked: "When you first came to our counter-intelligence office on the Boulevard Saint-Germain, 282, were you at that time a German spy?" . . Mata Hari says: "The fact that I was in close relations with certain persons, does not mean that I was engaged in espionage . I never had spied for Germany. With the exception of France, I am not a spy for any other country. Being a professional dancer, I certainly could communicate with some people in Berlin, but without the motive, which you probably associate the. Also, since I myself tell you the names of these people. " In the second half of April, 1917. French manage to decipher some Germanic radio messages, intercepted by eavesdropping station at the Eiffel Tower and relevance to the agent, H-21. . . Investigator Bushardon: "Suddenly the whole thing seemed to me absolutely clear: Margaret Zell has provided a number of major Kalle communications . What is it? I think that I can not read them as still connected performance oath. I can only say one thing: they were regarded, especially by our center, as information, in part contains important facts.

For me, they served as proof that this spy was somehow connected with a certain number of officers and that she was cunning enough to ask them some very specific and, moreover, insidious, the issues. Its relation to other interests allow her to receive information about the political situation in our country. " . . But Mata Hari continued to insist that only worked in Madrid for France and lured by germanskogo Major Kalle important information. . . Captain Bushardon, the investigator: "After all, you could not have acted differently . You become difficult to continue to live in Madrid and continue to meet with Major Kalle. Because you know that at any time you can get into the field of view of our agents, you willy-nilly had to think about how you can explain it if necessary. Thus, in order to motivate their visits to major and dispel our suspicions you were bound to pretend to flip a French specific information. This is the basic principle of any espionage game you are too clever to ignore this " The process began on 24 July 1917. And the next day, the jury sentenced Margaret Geertruydu Zell to death.

Hearing the verdict, Mata Hari shouted: "That's impossible!" That's impossible! " Klyune, her lawyer, falls in front of President Poincare on his knees unsuccessfully begging the head of state to pardon his client. Correspondent Henry J. Wales from the "International News Service October 15, 1917. witnessed the last hours of life of the famous dancer: "She learned to dismiss his petition for clemency only at the dawn, . when out of the prison of Saint-Lazare it took to standing at the gate of the car and drove to the barracks, . where the team was waiting for the shooters of execution., . . When a car drove up with sentenced to Vincennes barracks, military unit has been built, While Father Arboz spoke with sentenced, approached a French officer . "Bandage" - he whispered, standing next to nuns and gave them a piece of matter. But Mata Hari refused to wear a bandage. She stood erect and fearlessly looked at the soldiers, when the priest, sister, a nun and a lawyer withdrew. At the command soldiers clicked the shutter of his rifles.

Another team, and they took aim at the chest of a beautiful woman. Mata Hari remained impassive, her face did not flinch a muscle. She saw the officer who issued the orders, side. Saber soared into the air and then fell down. At the same instant thundered a volley. At a time when the shots thundered, Mata Hari leaned forward slightly. She slowly began to subside. Slowly, as if lenyas, she sank to her knees, still holding his head high and with the same calm expression. Then tipped back and hunched, his face turned towards the sky, stuck in the sand. What a sergeant approached her, took out a revolver and shot in the left temple ... Major von Repel: "As for success, which has H-21, then in this respect the opinions diverge. I think she could very well be observed and reports, as was one of the most intelligent women, as I have ever met. Two or three letters which I received from her, kept, as far as I remember, not very significant messages written in invisible ink. But I fully admit that its really important dispatches were intercepted and never delivered on.

She certainly had spied for Germany, and I think that her execution by the French, unfortunately, was justified. " . Source: First World War.com - Who's Who - Mata Hari What's New Who's Who - Mata Hari Mata Hari (1876-1917) was the stage name of the Dutch exotic dancer and prostitute Gertrud Margarete Zelle, who was shot by the French as a spy on 15 October 1917. Sponsored Links Born on 7 August 1876 in Leeuwarden in the Netherlands, Mata Hari's name has since become synonymous with espionage, although it remains by no means clear that she was guilty of the spying charges for which she charged. The daughter of a well-to-do hatter, Mata Hari attended a teachers' college in Leiden before, in 1895, marrying Captain Campbell MacLeod (of Scottish antecedents but serving in the Dutch army). They lived together from 1897-1902 in Java and Sumatra.

Returning to Europe together they thereafter separated, at which point Mata Hari took to dancing upon the Paris stage from 1905, initially as 'Lady MacLeod' and soon after as 'Mata Hari', the name she retained until her execution. Highly successful in Paris (among other cities), Mata Hari's attractiveness, as well as her apparent willingness to appear almost nude on the stage, made her a huge hit. She cultivated numerous lovers, including many military officers. Still unclear today are the circumstances around her alleged spying activities. It was said that while in The Hague in 1916 she was offered cash by a German consul for information obtained on her next visit to France. Indeed, Mata Hari admitted she had passed old, outdated information to a German intelligence officer when later interrogated by the French intelligence service. Mata Hari herself claimed she had been paid to act as a French spy in Belgium (then occupied by German forces), although she had neglected to inform her French spymasters of her prior arrangement with the German consul. She was, it seemed, a double agent, if a not very successful one.

It appears (the details are vague) that British intelligence picked up details of Mata Hari's arrangements with the German consul and passed these to their French counterparts. She was consequently arrested by the French on 13 February 1917 in Paris. Following imprisonment she was tried by a military court on 24-25 July 1917 and sentenced to death by a firing squad. The sentence was carried out on 15 October 1917 in Vincennes near Paris. She was 41. To many she remains the unfortunate victim of a hysterical section of the French press and public determined to root out evidence of a non-existent enemy within, a scapegoat attractive as much for her curious profession as for her crimes. Sponsored Links Saturday, 22 August, 2009 Michael Duffy The Russian war ace Alexander Kozakov claimed 20 victories during the war; his nearest compatriot, Vasili Yanchenko, claimed 16. - Did you know?

Question: What nationality was the spy Mata Hari?
Answer: Dutch